Compliance Stuff

California employers can now get a first look at the state’s key workplace-related legislative proposals in 2026. The state’s deadline for introducing new legislation in the current session was February 20, and lawmakers introduced nearly 1,800 bills – including many that cover significant labor and employment issues you’ll want to know about. Catch a teaser below and  register  for our upcoming  California Legislative Preview 2026  webinar on March 13 to get the full scoop. Table of Contents Antidiscrimination Protections Artificial Intelligence + Workplace Surveillance Employee Leaves and Accommodations Immigration Privacy and Cyber Wage and Hour Workplace Safety Antidiscrimination Protections Expansion of Ban-the-Box Requirements ( AB 2095 ).  In addition to  existing requirements under California’s Fair Chance Act , employers would be prohibited from refusing to hire an applicant or taking other adverse action solely or in part because of the individual...

Philadelphia employers should review their criminal background investigation practices and procedures in light of recent amendments to  Philadelphia’s Fair Criminal Record Screening Standards Ordinance  (FCRSS) that took effect on January 6, 2026, after being signed into law on October 8, 2025. Multistate employers also need to keep in mind compliance with varying fair chance or ban-the-box laws in other jurisdictions as well, as many states have enacted some limitations on use of criminal histories in hiring decisions, including California, Colorado, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin. Who Is Covered? The amended FCRSS applies to most private employers. Notably, the ordinance’s protections are not limited to employees and job applicants. Rather, it covers all in...

  Prince George County Council recently adopted the  Employment Fairness Act for Returning Citizens  (the Act), which amended and expanded its current “ban-the-box” law. The Act now prohibits employers with 10 or more full-time employees in the county from asking for or considering certain past criminal records of job applicants.    Specifically, employers cannot consider convictions of a job applicant where the sentence was completed for the following:   A nonviolent felony that occurred 5 years ago; or   A misdemeanor that occurred 30 months ago.    What is considered a nonviolent felony in  Prince George County,  Maryland? The definition of nonviolent felony, or “a felony conviction for a crime that is not a crime of violence as defined in Sec. 14-101 of the Criminal Law Article, Annotated Code of Maryland,” was further added to the Act. In addition to nonviolent felony, several other definitions were added to its Fair Criminal ...